The top line: Accused triple murderer Erin Patterson’s trial will be fast-tracked after she pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to eight charges including three counts of murder and five counts of attempted murder.
The 49-year-old told Magistrate Tim Walsh, “not guilty, Your Honour”, as he read each of the charges.
The bigger picture: Erin Patterson has formally pleaded not guilty to killing her former in-laws, Don and Gail Patterson, both 70, and Gail’s sister Heather Wilkinson, 66. All three died in hospital days after consuming an allegedly deadly mushroom meal at Patterson’s Leongatha home, in South Gippsland, on 29 July 2023.
Patterson has always maintained her innocence. She elected not to have a committal, fast-tracking her court process to face trial at the Supreme Court of Victoria.
Heather Wilkinson (left) and Don and Gail Patterson (right) died in hospital after eating a meal suspected to have contained poisonous mushrooms. Credit: Supplied
What else to know: Patterson also pleaded not guilty to the attempted murder of her ex-husband Simon at the lunch and on three occasions dating back to 2021, and the attempted murder of Wilkinson’s husband Ian, 68.
What happens next: Patterson’s case is listed for a directions hearing at the Supreme Court of Victoria on 23 May.